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Blak Douglas vs the Commonwealth directed by Angelica Cristina Dio, will open the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival (MDFF) this year. Archibald Prize winning artist Blak Douglas' uncompromising view of colonization and the affect it had on his family.
Today I've brought you a book that goes to the heart of our country. It's called The Voice to Parliament Handbook and it has been written by Thomas Mayo and Kerry O'Brien. Thomas Mayo is a Larrakia man who has written extensively about the Uluru Statement including Finding the Heart of the Nation, and Finding Our Heart, a book for young readers with illustrations by Blak Douglas. Kerry O'Brien is an award winning journalist whose is known for his work on 7.30, Lateline and Four Corners. Now this is not our usual fare of Australian Literature that I have each week for book club. But I wanted to bring this particular book in because the discussion around The Voice is so very important and this book offers a straightforward exploration of what is ‘The Voice', how we got here and what it means to have this opportunity to vote in a referendum. Each week when I present Final Draft on Saturday mornings, I talk about how these stories we read, that they are the stories that make us who we are. Stories have the power to reflect our world and in reading them; in taking them to heart or roundly rejecting them we in turn shape our world. The Voice to Parliament Handbook doesn't deal in abstractions though. It very clearly lays out the history, the movement to the voice and the issues that impact us as we prepare for a vote later this year. In a very real sense this book is part of a story that will shape who all of us are. So don't we owe to ourselves to do the work, to read the information and make sure when we vote, we vote with as much information as possible. The Voice to Parliament Handbook is a slim volume, clocking in at just under a hundred pages. It's inexpensive too (I saw it online for just twelve dollars). The goal seemingly to make this information as accessible as possible to as many people as possible. With all the shouting and political arguments, not to mention the seemingly contradictory misinformation out there this is a wonderful opportunity to get information from respected writers. Each chapter of the book opens up a facet of the history, journey and future of The Voice. The book begins with a transcript of the Uluru Statement from the Heart. This powerful document is a must hear for all. The book takes us on a journey through the history of the struggle for First Nations peoples to have an effective voice and to ensure it is heard. Later chapters describe for readers ‘what is a referendum?' The purpose and mechanics of the vote. Many of the frequently asked, or accused questions are laid out to debunk myths and misinformation. We are also treated to eminent scholars including Professor Fiona Stanley and Professor Marcia Langton discussing the practical implications of the Voice for supporting communities and closing the gap. This book is an invitation to everyone out there who is wondering about the voice or is perhaps feeling like they need more information to give to their loved ones. As we listen to opponents of the voice run a scare campaign behind the slogan “If you don't know, vote no”, this book claps back with “If you don't know, take the time to educate yourself”. I've got my copy and I'm going to pass it along to whoever wants to find out more. Many people will do the same and I'd challenge all you booklovers, you lovers of knowledge and those of you who want to find out, go and get a copy of The Voice to Parliament Handbook by Thomas Mayo and Kerry O'Brien. When history is made later this year it will help you to understand why this is such an important step forward for all of us.
On Monday 8th May, Lockie Skinner was broadcasting from the Studio! In this Podcast, Lockie yarns with Dunghutti Artist recognised as the winner of the Archibald Prizes in 2022, Blak Douglas!! Click PLAY to listen to Today's Show! ----- Weekday Mornings between 7am and 9am you will catch Lockie Skinner LIVE on OneMob Breakfast proudly brought to you by Ready Mob. Lockie is a Proud Gumbaynggirr Man from Coffs Harbour NSW. With a wealth of knowledge in Radio (Former Radio Announcer on 93.7FM Koori Radio), King of Community Engagement and Founder of OneMob Radio, Lockie is a young man that has a long list of achievements at only 25 years old. On this show, Lockie will be broadcasting from locations around Coffs Harbour where you can catch up with him and simply have a yarn. The Show will also include all the info you need to start your day! Community Events, Programs, General Info, Weather, Birthday Book, Surf and More!
When Shyamla Eswaran sat down for a portrait with Archibald prize-winning painter Blak Douglas, he saw Shyamla in a light they weren't ready to see themselves. Yumi Stynes chats with the dancer and artist about growing up South-Asian in Sydney's Shire, reckoning with their gender fluidity, and connecting with their culture through dance.
‘Welcome to not my Country' is Blak Douglas' entry in Waterfront Whale Tales art exhibition. “What people are looking at in my example in this beautiful exhibition is quite possibly the first ever artwork created that speaks about internal politics, and local internal politics.” – Blak Douglas.
The Queen's funeral is tonight and it's expected to be the most-watched television event of all time. Four billion people are expected to tune in. It will be the end of an era in Australia with King Charles III taking over from his mother. So what will it mean for Indigenous Australians? Our very own Rhianna Patrick, a Torres Strait Islander, tells us about her connection with the Queen and how growing up, she had a fascination with the monarch and royal family. We're also joined by Blak Douglas, an Indigenous artist who won this year's Archibald Prize, who has an entirely different perspective. He says Australia's continued support for the monarchy is salt in the wounds of First Nations people. In this episode of the Briefing, Indigenous perspectives on the Queen's funeral Headlines: - The Queen's funeral tonight- A massive typhoon has made landfall in Japan- Australia's biggest Childcare provider is offering incentives to entice workers- Patrick Cripps takes home the Brownlow medal Follow The Briefing: Instagram: @thebriefingpodcast Facebook: TheBriefingNewsAUTwitter: @TheBriefingAU See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Acclaimed Dhungutti artist Blak Douglas – born Adam Douglas Hill … Continued
Acclaimed Dhungatti artist Blak Douglas – born Adam Douglas Hill … Continued
It's that time of the year! The winners of the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes have been announced at the Art Gallery of New South Wales and in this episode you'll hear my interviews with each of those artists about their winning works: Blak Douglas (Archibald Prize)Nicholas Harding (Wynne Prize)Claire Healy and Sean Cordeiro (Sulman Prize) The Archibald Wynne and Sulman Prizes exhibition at the Art Gallery of NSW runs until 28 August 2022 and will then travel to Victoria and regional NSW until July 2023. Congratulations to all the winners and finalists! Links Blak Douglas - episode 68 Talking with Painters (podcast and YouTube video)Blak Douglas in his studio - TWP YouTube ChannelBlak Douglas delivering his Archibald winning painting on the loading dock - TWP YouTube channelNicholas Harding - episode 65 Talking with Painters (podcast and YouTube video)Nicholas Harding in his studio - TWP YouTube ChannelClaire Healy and Sean Cordeiro (website) Blak Douglas, 'Moby Dickens', synthetic polymer paint on linen, 300 x 200 cm Winner of the Archibald Prize 2022© the artist image © AGNSW, Mim Stirling Nicholas Harding, 'Eora', oil on linen, 196.5 x 374.8 cm Winner of the Wynne Prize 2022© the artist, image © AGNSW, Mim Stirling Claire Healy and Sean Cordeiro, 'Raiko and Shuten-dōji', acrylic gouache, jute and tape on helicopter shell, 159.5 x 120 cm Winner of the Sulman Prize 2022© the artists, image © AGNSW, Mim Stirling
Con un ritratto dell'artista Karla Dickens il prestigioso premio per ritratti è stato vinto da Blak Douglas. La recensione del direttore di blackartprojects Andrea Candiani.
On today's show, we'll start with a story about an important art prize, before learning about a picture of something mysterious in our skies. Then we'll head to a fashion show featuring clothes for people with disability, and celebrate a special day for our buzziest friend – the bee! Finally, we learn about Tasmania going carbon negative. Quiz Questions: 1. What do the 14 rain clouds in the painting represent? 2. What's the word, starting with G, that explains why blackholes suck everything in? 3. What's the name for clothing designed for people with a disability? 4. What's the word, starting with P, for the way bees help plants and flowers grow? 5. What does carbon negative mean? Bonus Tricky Question: How many times has an indigenous artist won the Archibald prize? Answers: 1. How many days and nights it rained in Lismore 2. Gravity, or gravitational pull 3. Adaptive clothing 4. Pollination 5. They take more carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere than they put in Bonus Tricky Answer: Two; Blak Douglas is the second.
On today's show, we'll start with a story about an important art prize, before learning about a picture of something mysterious in our skies. Then we'll head to a fashion show featuring clothes for people with disability, and celebrate a special day for our buzziest friend – the bee! Finally, we learn about Tasmania going carbon negative. Quiz Questions: 1. What do the 14 rain clouds in the painting represent? 2. What's the word, starting with G, that explains why blackholes suck everything in? 3. What's the name for clothing designed for people with a disability? 4. What's the word, starting with P, for the way bees help plants and flowers grow? 5. What does carbon negative mean? Bonus Tricky Question: How many times has an indigenous artist won the Archibald prize? Answers: 1. How many days and nights it rained in Lismore 2. Gravity, or gravitational pull 3. Adaptive clothing 4. Pollination 5. They take more carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere than they put in Bonus Tricky Answer: Two; Blak Douglas is the second.
Greg Appel and Eddy Jokovich take a trip to Blacktown in the heart of Sydney's suburbia. Archibald winner Blak Douglas paints an aural picture. This episode even includes a definitive national election prediction. Will it come true or will Eddy do the walk of shame down the M4?
How often does a political artwork fall into the national spotlight during a federal election? Hear from Archibald portrait prize winner Blak Douglas. Plus, an Italian art exhibition that puts NFT juggernaut Beeple alongside European masters and Australia's Richard Bell. And enter the studio of weaver, printmaker and textile artist Ema Shin.
The coalition is facing criticism for refusing to appear on NITV's election special, focusing on Indigenous issues - Wiradjuri writer Anita Heiss won this year's New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards and Blak Douglas won the Archibald Award 2022.
How often does a political artwork fall into the national spotlight during a federal election? Hear from Archibald portrait prize winner Blak Douglas. Plus, an Italian art exhibition that puts NFT juggernaut Beeple alongside European masters and Australia's Richard Bell. And enter the studio of weaver, printmaker and textile artist Ema Shin.
How often does a political artwork fall into the national spotlight during a federal election? Hear from Archibald portrait prize winner Blak Douglas. Plus, an Italian art exhibition that puts NFT juggernaut Beeple alongside European masters and Australia's Richard Bell. And enter the studio of weaver, printmaker and textile artist Ema Shin.
How often does a political artwork fall into the national spotlight during a federal election? Hear from Archibald portrait prize winner Blak Douglas.Plus, an Italian art exhibition that puts NFT juggernaut Beeple alongside European masters and Australia's Richard Bell.And enter the studio of weaver, printmaker and textile artist Ema Shin.
The Archibald is perhaps the most significant art prize in this country, capturing the public's attention each year with a collection of brilliant paintings that showcase the diverse potential of the portrait. The 2022 winner is Blak Douglas, for his painting of Wiradjuri artist Karla Dickens. In the Drawing Room, Blak shares his path to portraits and the role of politics in his art.
In this latest SBS Hindi bulletin: Prime Minister Scott Morrison promises to change his "bulldozer" style leadership if re-elected; Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Shadow Foreign Minister Penny Wong highlight increasing instability in the Indo-Pacific region in their debate at the National Press Club; Blak Douglas becomes the second Aboriginal artist to claim the Archibald Prize in the competition's 101-year history and more.
In this bulletin, a Chinese surveillance ship comes closer to the Australian mainland than ever before, Sydney Indigenous artist Blak Douglas takes out the 2022 Archibald portrait prize, and in sport, Australia's rugby community celebrates being awarded hosting rights for the Men's and Women's Rugby World Cups.
The Archibald is perhaps the most significant art prize in this country, capturing the public's attention each year with a collection of brilliant paintings that showcase the diverse potential of the portrait. The 2022 winner is Blak Douglas, for his painting of Wiradjuri artist Karla Dickens. In the Drawing Room, Blak shares his path to portraits and the role of politics in his art.
2021 was a huge year for Out of the Box, and we're celebrating that by doing a huge end-of-year wrap-up. We connected over Zoom a lot this year, and we walked through the chronologies of some very big stories. We looked at topics like race, gender, sexuality, politics, art, and religion. It was really hard to whittle them down, but these are some of the guests/ stories/ songs that stuck out to us: Blak Douglas, Tanya Pibersek, Donny Benet, Amani Haydar, Nancy Denis, Ana Maria Belo, and Tilly Lawless. If you want to hear these episodes in full, or any other episodes from 2021, you can do so on the programs page on the FBi Radio website or via the podcast. A huge thank you to everyone who helped out on Out of the Box this year. Executive producers Bre Jones and Glen Wolter, and producers Tash Noore, Emma Higgins, Mary Ventura, Louisa christie, Rebecca Merrick, and Danni Stewart. They've all done an incredible job bringing this show to life week after week. This episode was produced by Mia Hull. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
We interviewed Ralph Hobbs, Gallery Director of Nanda Hobbs in Sydney, a few months ago after the first Sydney lockdown. It was interesting to hear the changes the gallery had to establish in order to keep going during the first lockdown, using video and online software to continue sales. 'NandaHobbs is passionate about art, supporting artists, and building collections of the best contemporary art. Our represented artists are some of the most talented in Australia and abroad. We have a diverse exhibition program in our Sydney gallery and we also participate at international art fairs.'We have interviewed several Nanda Hobbs artists such as Antonia Mrjak, Blak Douglas, and Jody Graham, who all told us about his warm and approachable style. He sounds like the kind of gallerist every artist needs, nurturing, and understanding of how artists work. We also talked to Ralph about how he chooses artists for his gallery and advice for emerging artists and much more.. We should also say congratulations because 6 artists from Nanda Hobbs were finalists in the 2021 Archibald and Wynne, whilst Kathrin Longhurst won the Packing Room Prize!Thanks, Ralph, we really appreciate you taking the time to talk to us, we hope everyone enjoys the chat and learns how galleries work.
Blak Douglas is a proud Dungutti man and self-taught painter. His artworks are culturally and politically charged and he's been an Archibald Prize finalist four times. Blak spoke about the life he's led in Sydney, his artistic practice, and what it means to be an Aboriginal person in the 21st century. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
An edited version of this episode is also a video which you can see here: When I started this podcast in July 2016 with no knowledge of audio recording - let alone how to start a podcast - I never imagined that four years later I would have interviewed close to a hundred painters, as well as curators and authors, and have a YouTube channel with over 100 videos filmed on my iPhone. Building up this podcast would not have been possible, though, without the encouragement of those close to me and the time and generosity of my guests as well as many others' support in the wonderful Australian arts community. It has also been a privilege to get to know so many of you listeners either through messages, comments on social media or meeting you in person. Even if we haven't had any contact, you are the reason I keep doing the show so thank you for listening. I couldn't think of a better place to celebrate the centenary episode than the Art Gallery of NSW where about a quarter of my podcast guests are finalists in the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes. So I'd like to say a big thankyou to the Art Gallery of NSW who allowed me in with my selfie stick to film and speak in front of these works. You can listen to this episode as an audio guide if you are at the gallery (scroll down for a map of where the works are), watch the edited version as a video here or just listen as an audio episode - all the works are reproduced below. Click here to see the map if you are looking at this on your podcast app. Next to each artist's name is a time marking for each painting so you can skip forward or back. https://youtu.be/C0DniKUU7Uo The Sulman Prize 1. Joanna Braithwaite (3:12) 'Hoopla' oil on canvas 175 x 198.5 x 2 cm 2. Alan Jones (4:00) Painting 266 (Mike Kenny Oval), acrylic on board, 144 x 157.5cm 3. Katherine Hattam (5:00) 'History and fiction', oil on linen, 152 x 152cm 4. Paul Ryan (5:57) 'Three imaginary boys', oil on linen, 138 x 153cm 5. Abdul Abdullah (7:04) 'We didn't start the fire', oil on linen, 198.5 x 163cm 6. Marikit Santiago (winner) (8:05) 'The divine', acrylic, oil, pen, pyrography and 18ct gold leaf on ply, 179.5 x 120.5cm The Wynne Prize 7. Aida Tomescu (9:20) 'Silent spring', oil on linen, 200.5 x 307 x 6.5 cm 8. Del Kathryn Barton (10:30) ' I take it down to the flow', bronze, acrylic-painted MDF plinth 190 x 75 x 55 cm 9. Tim Storrier (11:35) 'The plague year (an itinerant's repose), acrylic on canvas, 107 x 300cm 10. Natasha Bieniek (12:30) 'Lalla', oil on gold mirror Dibond, 57 x 43.5cm 11. Luke Sciberras (13:20) 'White Christmas, Bell, NSW', oil on board, 160 x 244cm 12. Lucy Culliton (14:30) 'Gunningrah, Bottom Bullock', oil on canvas, 183 x 183cm 13. Hubert Pareroultja (winner) (15:15) 'Tjoritja (West MacDonnell Ranges, NT)', acrylic on canvas, 183 x 244cm 14. Guy Maestri (16:12) 'The rain song', oil on linen, 198 x 244cm The Archibald 15. Dee Smart (17:50) 'I'm here', oil on birch wood board, 59 x 49cm 16. Marc Etherington (19:20) 'Sleeping beauty (portrait of Michael Reid OAM), acrylic on canvas, 221 x 191cm 17. Vincent Namatjira (20:15) 'Stand strong for who you are', acrylic on linen, 152 x 198cm 18. Blak Douglas (21:15) 'Writing in the sand', synthetic polymer paint on canvas, 250 x 250cm 19. Abdul Abdullah (22:20) Untitled self-portrait, oil and aerosol on linen, 183 x 163cm 20. William Mackinnon (23:15) 'Sunshine and Lucky (life), acrylic and oil on linen, 220 x 160cm 21. Jonathan Dalton (24:15) 'Angela', oil on linen, 168 x 132.5cm 22. Nick Stathopoulos (25:05) 'Ngaiire', acrylic and oil on linen, 96.5 x 96.5cm 23. Wendy Sharpe (26:10) 'Magda Szubanski - comedy and tragedy', oil on linen, 183 x 147cm 24. Peter Wegner (26:55) 'Chef's coat, Graeme Doyle', oil on alumnium, 118.5 x 118.
Welcome to episode 20 -We were beyond excited to interview the wonderful artist, Blak Douglas, at his Marrickville studio last week. Blak Douglas was born in Western Sydney to a Dhungatti Aboriginal Father and Caucasian Mother, Blak Douglas was trained in illustration & photography and became self–practiced in painting. Blak Douglas is also a classically trained Yidaki player performing nationally and internationally accompanying the likes of Albert David, Christine Anu, Gondwanna Voices, Paul Jarman, Jessica Mauboy, Jane Rutter, Music Viva and Peter Sculthorpe. He has been a finalist in the Archibald prize three times along with the Mosman art prize, the Wynne prize and won the Kilgour art prize in 2019 and much more! @blakdouglas was incredibly candid and open about his career, the Archibald prize, his use of materials, the art world, sponsorship by @3m masking tape and @permaplastik paint. He spoke about the political aspects of his work and his upcoming 'Blak Swans' series focusing on his response to the Blak lives matter movement - ‘So the immediate image that sprung to my mind is that of the ultimate metaphor for such an empowering individual… the Blak ballerina. The antithesis of white conservatism and clinical colonialism. A sacrilegious spectacle of uncouth representation. Here we have the beginnings of freedom of race, culture and most importantly – movement & grace. A celebration of EVERYTHING that has been denied to our Grandmothers, Aunties and Mothers. My suite of sweets dance at will across THEIR countries, celebrating THEIR connections and emotions. All the while, mimicking the very art form that has become the conservative constraint that has for some 200yrs silenced her dances upon this continent.'He is painting Dujuan of @inmyblooditruns for the 2020 Archibald prize. We can't wait to see that one. We learnt so much from this interview, thanks again Blak Douglas. Find out more about him at www.blakdouglas.com.au Happy listening and don't forget to rate, review and share this podcast!
Here's your guide to the paintings of the seven podcast guests whose works were shortlisted in the 2019 Wynne prize. Go to episodes 72 and 74 for the Sulman and Archibald guides! Click the play button underneath the photo to hear the podcast episode and scroll down for video of the Wynne winner Sylvia Ken. Click here for an overview of how to use this guide Click here for images of the paintings in the Wynne prize Click here to see the Gallery Map if you are looking at this on your podcast app. https://youtu.be/n7FwTgsPOCY Artist Sylvia Ken talks with Maria Stoljar Gallery map of the AGNSW - Archibald, Wynne Sulman prizes exhibition Click on the artist's name below to go to their podcast episode and see the video The time marking shows where the artist's work is mentioned on the podcast and the number following the name is the number of the work in the AGNSW. 0:55___Marc Etherington (61) 3:08___Ken Done (63) 4:34___ Blak Douglas and Elaine Russell (62) 7:38____Natasha Bieniek (54) 10:06___Abdul Abdullah (52) 11:56___Michaye Boulter (55) 13:39___Sylvia Ken (winner) (65)
This year twenty podcast guests were selected as finalists in the Archibald, Wynne, and Sulman prizes, which are exhibited every year at the Art Gallery of NSW, with a total of 26 paintings between them. In the next three episodes I'm going to talk to you about those works. Scroll down to see some tips on how to listen to these episodes. How to use episodes 72-74: As an audio guide at the Art Gallery of NSW (until 8 September 2019) or any gallery the exhibition travels to. scroll down for a map of the gallery rooms and list of finalists. (or click here if you're looking at this on your podcast app) There is a time marking for each painting so you can skip forward or back.To hear the complete podcast interview and view video of the artist click on the artist's name in the list below.Tips - download the podcast episodes onto your phone before you go (in case the wi-fi's not great) and take a screenshot of the map! Listen while you look at the paintings online on the gallery's websiteclick here for the Archibald paintingsclick here for the Wynne paintingsclick here for the Sir John Sulman paintings Just listen! It'll still be fun. The guides The Archibald guide is here The Wynne guide is here The Sulman guide is here Gallery Map Map of location of podcast guest paintings at the AGNSW. (Click here if you are looking at this on your podcast app) Episode 72: SULMAN FINALISTS 1:12 ___John Bokor(84) 3:37____Paul Ryan(104) 6:10___ Ken Done (87) 8:00____McLean Edwards (88) 10:38___Alan Jones (91) 13:19___Abdul Abdullah (81) Episode 73: WYNNE FINALISTS 00:55___Marc Etherington (63) 3:08___ Ken Done (61) 4:34____Blak Douglas (62) 7:38____Natasha Bieniek (54) 10:06___Abdul Abdullah (52) 11:56___Michaye Boulter(55) 13:39___Sylvia Ken(65) Episode 74: ARCHIBALD FINALISTS 1:25____Jude Rae (41) 3:35____Jonathan Dalton (14) 6:40____Prudence Flint (22) 9:38____Tony Costa (13) 13:05___Blak Douglas (18) 15:50___Paul Ryan (43) 18:13___Marc Etherington (20) 21:11___Loribelle Spirovski (44) 23:35___Laura Jones (27) 25:10___Vanessa Stockard (45) 27:54___Natasha Bieniek (5) 29:51___Natasha Walsh (49) 32:45___Euan Macleod (34)
Here's your guide to the paintings of the 13 podcast guests whose works were shortlisted in the 2019 Archibald prize. Go to episodes 72 and 73 for the Wynne and Sulman guides! Click here for an overview of how to use this guide Click here for images of the Archibald Prize finalists Click here to see the gallery map below if you are looking at this on your podcast app. Feature Photo: 'Lindy Lee', (detail), oil on canvas, 182.5 x 152cm, Tony Costa, winner of Archibald prize 2019 Click on the artist's name below to go to their podcast episode and see the video. The time marking shows where the artist's work is mentioned in the episode and the number in brackets is the number of the work in the AGNSW. 1:25___ Jude Rae (41) 3:35___ Jonathan Dalton (14) 6:40___Prudence Flint (22) 9:38___Tony Costa (winner) (13) 13:05___Blak Douglas (18) 15:50___Paul Ryan (43) 18:13___Marc Etherington (20) 21.11___Loribelle Spirovski (44) 23:35___Laura Jones (27) 25:10___ Vanessa Stockard (45) 27:54___Natasha Bieniek (5) 29:51___ Natasha Walsh (49) 32:45___Euan Macleod (34)
Blak Douglas is well known for his brightly coloured landscapes with their trademark seven-tiered sky but he’s also an accomplished portraitist. At the time of writing, his work hangs in the Art Gallery of NSW in both the Archibald and Wynne prizes which are arguably the most famous portrait and landscape awards in Australia. His paintings always have something to say about social justice, often with irony and humour playing an important part and with his Aboriginal identity central to his work. He’s won several awards and has been finalist in many others including three times in the Archibald prize and his work is held in various public collections including the National Gallery of Australia. His grandmother, Clorine Morthem, was one of the stolen generation, taken at 13 years of age and institutionalised in Cootamundra Girls home, something that has had repercussions down the generations. His father’s ancestors are the Dunghutti people from northern NSW and his mother was from an Irish Australian background. Although his name given at birth is Adam Hill, he took on the name Blak Douglas in recent years to reflect those two sides of his ancestry. I spoke with him in his Redfern studio which he shares with other artists and this conversation starts at an earlier time, when his parents first met. Press play under the feature photo above to hear the podcast episode. Scroll down to see a short video of Douglas in his studio. Current events Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes, Art Gallery of NSW, 11 May to 8 September 2019 Show notes Blak DouglasBlak Douglas on Instagram Boomalli Aboriginal Artists Co-operativeAunty Jean SouthUncle Roy KennedyAunty Elaine RussellAunty Esme TimberyHetti Perkins 'White shells, black heart', 2019, synthetic polymer paint and shells on canvas, 195 x 195cmFinalist Archibald Prize, 2019 'Six Finger Salary', 2009, synthetic polymer on cotton canvas, 100 x 130cmFinalist Wynne Prize 2009 'Uncle Roy Kennedy', 2018, synthetic polymer paint on canvas, 195.5 x 195.5cmFinalist Archibald Prize 2018 'Smoke and mrrors (Uncle Max Eulo), acrylic on canvas, 214 x 214cmFinalist Archibald prize 2015 'Ashes, damper and kangaroo stew for dinner', 2019, synthetic polymer paint on canvas, 94.5 x 124.5cm (collaboration with the late Elaine Russell)Finalist Wynne prize 2019 'Three strikes and you're out', synthetic polymer on canvas 150 x 200cm 'Upstanding Citizen', 2018, synthetic polymer on canvas, 120 x 100cm
'Gatekeeping' continues to be a rousing and provocative word with regard to Indigenous and non-Indigenous relations. Gatekeeping pertains to the various forms of apartheid in Australia, some of which still apply, if in a veiled and insidious way. But the term is also relevant to Aboriginal communities themselves, in which differing degrees of 'whiteness' and 'blackness' are consigned different values of entitlement and belonging. It is a taxonomy that tends to elide the deeper and more urgent issues that Indigenous cultures, in Australia and elsewhere, currently face. In the spirit of launching the journal co-founded by Professor Jakelin Troy and Dr Adam Geczy (who are the editors, with Lorena Sekwan Fontaine), of ab-Original (Penn State University Press), 'gatekeeping' is used as a relevant and ironic term for a journal whose key mission is to examine global indigenous cultures and their diverse transnational and pan-racial contexts. Joining Prof Jakelin Troy and Dr Adam Geczy in this discussion are Blak Douglas (aka Adam Hill), an artist, musician and social activist and Dr Mick Adams, Senior Research Fellow Australian Indigenous Health, at Edith Cowan University, WA. This forum was held as part of the Sydney Ideas program on 14 September, 2017: http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2017/gatekeeping_ab-0riginal_launch_forum.shtml
In this episode we are joined in the studio by New York based Australian artist Ian Strange aka Kid Zoom to discuss his upcoming show, and American artist Lekha Jandhyala talks to us about her time in Australia on a prestigious Thomas J. Watson Fellowship. Plus, Abdul interviews Blak Douglas, and Reko Rennie about their practice and upcoming projects. Tracks are curated by Bhenji Ra.
Ian Watson talks about his book "A Disappearing World, Studies in Class, Gender and Memory"; Davy Thomas goes to CFMEU to support relatives of Aboriginal people dead in Police custody; Kevin Healy lets rip on what has happened in the past week; Blak Douglas, the first identified Dhungatti Aboriginal artist to have been selected as a finalist in the Archibald Prize, taks about his work and the portrait of Uncle Max Eulo an Aboriginal cultural entertainer. ‘He has etched his way into modern Sydney Aboriginal culture somewhat enigmatically,’ says Blak Douglas. The Archibald Prize finalists are at the Ballarat Art Gallery up to Nov 15.